Recipes and Stories from a hungry French girl

Garlic scape Galettes

Nowadays’ French Cuisine is a joyful fusion of old and new, authentic and international – and this dish, Garlic scape galettes, is the perfect depiction of this.

Today’s recipe is adapted from Orathay Soukisisavahn ‘s Cong You Bing (scallion pancakes). A graduate from Ferrandi School in Paris, Orathay is a France-based Asian chef, food stylist and author of a myriad of cooking books. Every month, in the French Saveurs Magazine, she shares a recipe inspired by her Chinese, Laotian and Thai origins.

Her recipes are obviously not what you would expect from French Cuisine – but I like to think they are undoubtedly part of it. Nems, Pad Thai, Banh Mi and Cong on Bing are deeply rooted in the Asian culinary culture, and now also naturally find their way in French cooking magazines and on French dinner tables.

A little of bit of old, a little bit of new, authentic, international. See, what did I tell you?

Cong You Bing galettes are traditionally made with scallions, but I swapped them with some fresh, seasonal garlic scapes. They worked perfectly in this savoury galette, adding just the right amount of fragrance (and French flair!). I also swapped the oil for butter -blame it on my Brittany roots- to create an infused garlic butter, used to brush off the dough before rolling it. It made the galettes so crisp and buttery, with a nice light-golden hue.

Packed with garlic flavour, these galettes are crispy, flaky and deliciously buttery. They can be shared as an appetizer, or as a meal with spreads and a salad.

I hope you enjoy these Garlic Scape Galettes as much as I did. Bon appétit !

Instructions

Prepare the infused butter. Grind together the Szechuan peppers and the all-spice, and mix them with the mashed garlic, chopped garlic scapes, salt, and hot pepper powder.

In a small sauce pan, melt the butter slowly over low/medium heat (be careful not to brown the butter). Turn off the heat, and add in the spice mix. Swirl gently with a spoon, and let infuse for 15 minutes.

Meanwhile, prepare the dough for the galettes. In a deep mixing bowl, sift together the flour and the salt, and form a well in the middle. Slowly pour in the boiling water and mix roughly, with a wooden spoon. Pour in the cold water and mix more with the spoon.

With your hands, knead the dough for at least 5 minutes, it shouldn’t stick to your fingers nor to the bowl. Shape it into a small ball, place it back to the bottom of the bowl, cover with a plastic film and set aside for 30 minutes.

After 30 minutes, on a floured working surface, divide the dough into 4 equal parts. Cover the doughs with plastic wrap when not working with them. With a rolling pin, spread out the first piece into a rectangle (the length should be equal to 3 hands, and the width should be equal to 2 hands). Brush some of the infused butter all over the surface of the dough (make sure to get some garlic scape bits on there too). Top with some more fresh garlic scape (equivalent of one garlic scape).

Roll the rectangle up into a tight, skinny log (starting to roll from the longer side of the rectangle), and then roll the logo into a coil. Set aside, and repeat with the remaining dough.

Roll out the coils into 7-8” circles, by placing them between two pieces of parchment paper and spreading then with your rolling pin.

Heat up a frying pan or skillet over medium heat. Gently place a galette in a pan and cook for a few minutes on both sides (until light golden to golden brown). Repeat for each galette.

MY NOTES...

Serve with a salad and a hot pepper spread (like I did). It is also delicious with some hummus or enjoyed with a curry (instead of a naan).